Saturday, October 30, 2010

Dylan Meconis graduated from Wesleyan University, where she studied in the College of Letters. After that she lived in Paris. She was an original contributor to the Flight anthology series and a nominee for the Friends of Lulu Kim Yale award. She has published Bite Me,Wire Mothers: Harry Harlow and the Science of Love, and Family Man.

My main project is the graphic novel Family Man. It's historical fiction, set in a university in 1768 (and in the surrounding forest). I just printed the first volume this summer, and the second volume is going up page by page online at www.lutherlevy.com.

I also recently completed a script for a young adult fantasy comic that's looking for a publisher, and I'm working on a choose-your-own-adventure book for Lerner featuring the Three Musketeers.

DD: What is your artistic Process?

It depends on the project. Ideally I write the script, then do very rough thumbnails, then dive straight into penciling, inking, and digital colors or toning. I really love variety, though. I've never done any two comics the same way.

DD: What Comic/ Trade would you recommend?

There's something out there for everybody! The books I end up recommending the most are probably the mind-bending, anthropological sci-fi series Finder, by Carla Speed McNeil. I also love Berlin by Jason Lutes and Isaac the Pirate by Christophe Blaine. For a younger audience I will be soon be recommending Barry Deutsch's upcoming book Hereville; I got to see some of Barry's early process (and pose for reference photos!). There hasn't been a kid's book this great since Rachel Hartman stopped drawing Amy Unbounded.

And there are dozens of really wonderful comics online as well. Octopus Pie, The Meek, Dicebox, Dresden Codak...

DD: What Comic/ Trade would you recommend to someone new to comics?

I try to ask what prose books, movies, or shows a person is into before I recommend their Very First Comic. With the right recommendation you can open up a whole world of new reading to somebody; with the wrong one, a person can walk off believing that comics are a waste of time.

Can you tell I almost went to library school?

DD: How involved are you with the illustration, the look and feel, of the books you write?

I'm almost always the artist. I've written a few short pieces for other people, which is fun; I compare it to taking somebody else's hot car out for a drive. I've never written for an Artist To Be Named Later. I either want to write for myself (where I know what I'm getting), or write to take advantage of somebody's particular gifts.

I love to draw in a variety of styles, so in a way I get to write for a different artist with each project.

DD: What skill would you like to learn?

I'd like to become better at carving out time for writing. When you do freelance, sell and ship merchandise online, attend conventions, and update with new pages of finished art, it's hard to clear out your brain and switch to the engaged focus that writing requires.

DD: What's the most important thing you've learned?

Don't let the cats near the drafting table. Also, 6x9 is not actually the same proportion as 9x12.

Hard-won knowledge.

DD: Do you have a collection? If so, what is one of the items you're most proud of?

I have a LOT of books - prose and comics both - but I treasure them for the content and the reading they represent, not for their supposed rarity or market value.

I also have several pages of original art by Carla Speed McNeil. I have one particularly lovely wordless page from her book Dream Sequence. That would definitely be one of the things I'd grab from the house in event of a fire.

DD: What is your favorite genre of Comics?

The good ones.

No, really. I lean towards the more brainiac kinds of comics - historical fiction, smart young adult novels, picky fantasy epics like Sandman, memoirs like Fun Home. But I will read and probably enjoy just about anything you put in front of me so long as it's written and drawn intelligently and with passion and humor. I can't handle anything too self-consciously experimental or morose, and lazily banged-out pulp irritates me just as much.

But yeah, there's room on my shelf for both Next Wave: Agents of H.A.T.E. and Persepolis.

DD: Do you have an Ipad? If so what do use it for the most.

Nope. I try not to buy anything first-generation from Apple. It's tempting, but I can't afford to pay a premium to look cool for a year.

DD: What is your favorite TV show/ movie?

I love Deep Space 9, Slings & Arrows, 30 Rock, Modern Family...all character-focused shows.
I have a lot of favorite movies, but for some reason the movie I put on most compulsively for comfort purposes is High Fidelity. Something about it feels grounding and true.

DD: How does the Portland comics culture shapes your work

I work at Periscope Studio in downtown Portland, so I live inside the Portland comics culture every day. One big submarine full of my fellow artists. If there's an evening event - a book signing or a party - we all trek out to it together.

I can't imagine doing this alone. I moved here because I had friends in comics who were well-established in town. Portland is the first place where I've feel I completely fit in.

DD: What was your first comic convention?

Probably the Emerald City Comic-Con circa 1998 or so. I grew up in Seattle. It was a tiny show those days, spread out over a few rooms, mostly dealers with a few creators stuffed into a side area. These days it's a really lovely, full-scale convention with a great variety of exhibitors and attendees.

My first serious con experience was San Diego, though. I still haven't recovered from that first sensory deluge, even though it's gotten three times as crazy since.

DD: What is your favorite part of comic conventions?

Talking to readers in person. I get good feedback online, but there's still nothing as cool as having a live person in front of you speaking in detail about your work.

DD: If you weren’t doing comics what would you do?

Probably writing, teaching, theater, or some combination of those. Storytelling is my favorite thing on earth.

I was a designer for a visual consulting firm for awhile - I liked the illustration parts and turning dry concepts into fun visual metaphors, but I'm not cut out for the corporate world. Too dreary, and too much self-delusion from middle managers about the deep meaningfulness of their obscure business products. Very nice people, hard workers, all contributing to the economy more than I! Just not my scene.

As a kid I also considered becoming a pastor, a therapist, or a marine biologist. You grow up in the Pacific Northwest, you want to study whales.

DD: Do you have a favorite restaurant that you would recommend?

Pok Pok. Always Pok Pok. If the world were ending tomorrow morning, I'd go there for dinner tonight. Even the water tastes good. If they were booked, I'd try Navarre or Bamboo Sushi.

DD: How long have you lived in Portland, what made you choose Portland?

I moved here after graduating from college in 2005. This was the city I had the most friends in - comics folks I'd initially met online. I went to school in Connecticut and didn't like being so far away from my family in Seattle - at the same time, I didn't want to just go back to my life at 17. So Portland was the perfect distance away. A place I could make my own, that felt like home, was fun and affordable, and already had people I knew I could depend on.

DD: What is your favorite part of Portland?

I love many parts of Portland, even if on some days the inevitable provincial ticks, self-absorption, and squabbles make me want to give the city a time-out. But when I try to think of something representative... it's the fact that everybody thanks their bus driver. Most of the time the driver replies "You're welcome!" or "Have a great day." I'm sure that seems corny to some, but it's very genuine.

DD: Where in Portland/ Oregon would you most like to visit?

I'd like to visit Powell's Books with a thousand dollars.

DD: Would you like to write/Illustrate for another media? or conversely, how would you feel about writing a comic of a character from a different media, for example, Dr. Who, James Bond? What would you explore?

I'd like to try playwriting. My scripts tend to look like plays before I break them up into panels, and I love live theater. I'd have to get over the scariness of ceding interpretation to actors and a director, though. (Plays directed by the playwright don't often work.)

Film is full of too many compromises, even though the results can be immersive and stunning. I don't have any confidence that I could participate in the making of a movie and not feel drowned out by so many other voices, unless it was a tiny indie flick.

If I could write for an established character...hm. Tell you what, I'd love to write for the long-promised, never-delivered TV show starring Tony Stewart Head as Rupert "Ripper" Giles, his character from Buffy: The Vampire Slayer. A middle-aged British librarian with a violent youth in his past and the power to call demons? I could go places with that.

Monday, October 25, 2010

Brian Churilla is a cartoonist born, raised and currently residing in Portland, Oregon. He lives in Portland with his wife and daughter. He worked on The Engineer: Konstrukt for Archaia, The Anchor for Boom, The Avengers and the Infinity Gauntlet for Marvel Comics and many other check his site for a full list. He has also worked with Oni, Dark Horse, Image, Digital Webbing and Red 5.

From what I read he also enjoys "long walks in the woods, death metal, black metal, metal metal, metal metal metal, horror movies and Spaghetti Westerns".

DD: What is your artistic Process?

Brian Churilla: As it pertains to comics, I usually get a script and read it through. As I'm doing so, I like to doodle here and there on the script, especially if any images/shots pop into my head as I read it. I draw a small thumbnail for each page, and once those get approved I blow them up and print them out in a light blue, pink, or orange directly onto the Bristol. The thumb becomes my underdrawing, and seems to speed the process up a little. I broke this whole process down into great detail some time back. More can be read about it by clicking here.

DD: What Comic/ Trade would you recommend?

I can't say that I read many comics anymore. Wish I could find the time. I would suggest anything by Will Eisner, Mike Mignola and/or Alex Toth.

DD: What Comic/ Trade would you recommend to someone new to comics?

See above. ha!

DD: When are story illustrator, how involved are you in the writing?

I was very involved in the writing of The Engineer. Everything else? Not so much. Been a hired hand since then.

Jimmy has a plan for the Jonah Hex vs Grape Ape. Check into ask Jimmy a Where Monsters Dwell podcast.

Hang out with Jimmy Palmiotti, Tom Jane, Amanda Conner, Tim Bradstreet, and the Rev. Dave Johnson after the Long beach comicon at Gladstone's Restaurant. Bid on Booze and Banter Only 20 fans will be allowed at the event, so get in on this while you still can if you will be in the area. Proceeds go to the HERO Initiative. Full story

UPDATE: There will be no GRAPE APE story, but go see Jimmy and gang in Long beach. It sounds fun.

Gannon and I went to Wonder Woman Day V at Excalibur in Portland. Gannon got great set of signed prints from the artists there. Thanks to everyone who contributed such amazing art work. It was a fantastic event. There was fantastic art Storm troopers, pirates and Super Heroes. Gannon got a picture of Captain America and Darth Vader. That would be a crossover worth reading.

Local hero Sean Christensen has helped us put together an awesome new art show, Ghostwood Forest: A Twin Peaks Themed Art Show. The show goes up Friday , October 29th and features Sean, John Isaacson, Amy Kuttab, Dylan Williams, Chris Cilla, Aron Steinke and many more awesome peeps. The show starts at 7pm with free themed drinks and food. At 9pm, we will be projecting the feature length Twin Peaks pilot episode. Here’s the poster:

Sunday, October 24, 2010

Friday, October 22, 2010

ComicTwart the Twitter Art Blog. Has a great theme "What IF" These are the Drawings that should be made. The one above is by Francesco Francavilla, the new artist on Daredevil. Check it out the Retro Luke Cage and heroes for Hire is awesome.

Thursday, October 21, 2010

Jamie S Rich has broad experience as an editor, writer and reviewer of different genres of pop culture.
Before writing full time he was an editor for 4 years at Dark Horse and editor-in-chief of Oni for six years. He was the writer of SpellCheckers, Twelve Reasons Why I Love Her, You Have Killed Me and many others. He has had his short stories in several anthologies such as Popgun, Four Letter Worlds, Dark Horse Book of the Dead, and This is a Souvenir. He has several prose novels, Cut My Hair, I Was Someone Dead, The Everlasting, and Have You Seen the Horizon Lately? He has also rewritten several manga and is a music and movie journalist. Jamie also reviews movies for DVDTalk.com. and is a member of the Online Film Critics Society

Jamie S Rich: Whatever I am working on is usually too far ahead of the public schedule to talk about. I have various things in differing states of development with artists like Natalie Nourigat and Stephen DeStefano, but those cats are still tied up in their bags. The next two thing that people will likely see with my name on it will be the second volume of Spell Checkers next summer, with art once again by Nicolas Hitori de and Joëlle Jones. Joëlle and I are also about to start production on the follow-up to You Have Killed Me, which I actually wrote quite some time ago. Actually, Mike Allred and I have a short story in the upcoming Yo Gabba Gabba! comic from Oni Press, and I've also been working with Mike in an editorial capacity on a couple of Madman specials. So, a few things will be trickling out here and there.

DD: What is your writing Process?

It's a lot like sculpture. I have a big granite block made of blank screens and paper that I just chip away at until the words emerge. How I go about that fluctuates, honestly. Some projects inspire more planning, where I go around and around eyeballing the situation until I can't stand it anymore and dive in, and others just hit the ground running. I let the material dictate the method.

DD: What Comic/ Trade would you recommend?

A recent book that really knocked my socks off is Koko Be Good, Jen Wang's debut, a kind of adult coming-of-age tale. Like a second coming of age, the sort of thing that happens when your 20s aren't exactly paying off. Matt Wagner's epic Mage: The Hero Discovered is about to come back into print via Image Comics, and that is a true cornerstone of independent comics. Matt really set the standard for what a creative individual should aspire to in this field. He's the model of successful creator ownership.

DD: What Comic/ Trade would you recommend to someone new to comics?

The first Madman volume is a good place to start. Mike Allred bridges the gap between what most people perceive to be comics (superheroes) and what the art form really can be. I've had various retail jobs in different areas of entertainment, though--comic books, records, video--and I know there is no one thing that fits everybody. In a field as varied as this one, there is a book to suit any interest, it's a matter of finding out what that person is into and putting something neat in their hands. Scott Pilgrim has a mass appeal, but so does something like American Vampire. I'm really looking forward to Scott Chantler's Two Generals, and I think his historical adventures, like Northwest Passage, could turn anyone on to sequential art, wheeras 12 Days by June Kim has an emotional resonance competitive with any other media. I am still surprised that more people don't know about that book. I hope to get my copy back from Joëlle one day, but it's been like four or five years so I am probably screwed.

DD: How involved are you with the illustration, the look and feel, of the books you write?

It's a tough question to answer. In a way, I am very involved, as I choose who I will work with and that alone really establishes the timbre of the finished product. I like to write for a specific artist and think about things they like to draw. Sometimes I make suggestions for a specific motif or layout, but always with the caveat that if there is a better way, I want to see that instead. It also comes down to the artist, some prefer to be left alone to do what they do, some like a more open dialogue. I hate asking for revisions, I find it very intrusive, and so I choose carefully if I think there is something already drawn that maybe could go a different way. I like a relationship where there is mutual respect. Respect my words, I'll respect your ink line.

DD: What skill would you like to learn?

Sometimes I think if I could draw, it would make things infinitely more easier. Is "patience" a skill? I'd like to talk to the animals like Dr. Doolittle.

DD: What's the most important thing you've learned?

That as much as you really should sweat the small stuff in your comics, you should also cut yourself some slack. The things that drive us crazy in production are likely things that only we will notice, the readers have no idea.

DD: Do you have a collection? If so, what is one of the items you're most proud of?

I don't have a collection so much as the collection has me. Comics and DVDs and the like tend to accumulate in my home. It's a neverending battle for shelf space, and my cat does her level best to shed hair in amounts competitive with the depth of junk littering our apartment. I've become less enamored of special editions and books as objects over time; a rare book is no better than a less rare version, it's about the enjoyment of it. That said, having the recent IDW Rocketeer releases--the oversized deluxe reprint of the stories in both the traditional form and also the black-and-white reproductions of Dave Stevens' art--are pretty damn fantastic. I also got the fancy version of the Dave Stevens bio/art book Brush with Passion. Those mean a lot to me since Dave is no longer with us. That said, my original 1986 hardcover signed and personalized by Dave, along with the signed promo poster, those are priceless. I think I might have gotten that autograph at my first San Diego Comic Con. Comparable to that is my copy of my first novel, Cut My Hair, signed by all the people who worked on it.

DD: What is your favorite genre of Comics?

I don't know that I have a favorite genre in terms of comics. Any genre I think of seems limited in the field. Like, how many crime comics are there, for instance, compared to everything else? I'd say "creator-owned," really, the sort of thing where the person is passionate and they own the material and they aren't doing it for anyone but themselves. Those books resonate with me more.

DD: Do you have an Ipad? If so what do use it for the most.

I do have one. I probably use it most for goofing off. I only tend to read on it when I am out of the house, though I sometimes read comics in bed in the dark now. I'm about to travel with it long distance for the first time and leave the laptop at home, which should be interesting. Honestly, I am still exploring with it. I do a lot of notetaking on it, and that may end up being one of its primary functions.

DD: What is your favorite TV show/ movie?

I am currently most obsessed with Mad Men, without a doubt. And when the season ends, I am sure Boardwalk Empire will take pole position. I see more movies than most people I know so that's hard to nail down. I always say I think the movie I've seen more than any other is The Maltese Falcon. I'm also obsessed with the Criterion Collection, a boutique DVD label. Hence http://www.criterionconfessions.com.

DD: How does the Portland comics culture shapes your work

I don't really know that it does. I keep to myself a lot, and when I go out, it's to walk Joëlle's dogs or something. Things have been a little more active since Mike Allred came to town, and I am in a book club with a bunch of comics types, like Laura Allred and Matt Wagner and Craig Thompson. I think less than influencing the work, the communication with like-minded individuals who understand what may be ailing you keeps a body sane. Then there are the youngsters like Natalie Nourigat and Emi Lenox and they just make me roll my old-man eyes. ;)

DD: What was your first comic convention?

A Creation Con in Los Angeles in maybe 1984 or thereabouts. Guests were Howard Chaykin, Jo Duffy, and John Romita Jr.

DD: What is your favorite part of comic conventions?

Booze.

DD: If you weren’t doing comics what would you do?

More novels, maybe. Teaching was the only thing I ever remotely considered besides writing. I wasn't made to do anything else. Fate dropped on my head like a helmet.

DD: Do you have a favorite restaurant that you would recommend?

I love Thai Orchid. I like to get the pad thai blazing hot. It's not a restaurant, it's more of a shop, but Pudding on the Rice is to die for.

DD: How long have you lived in Portland, what made you choose Portland?

I moved here in 1994 to work for Dark Horse Comics. That was really it. It was either sit in California and continue doing phone surveys or come to the Northwest and make funnybooks. Honestly, it could have been anywhere, it just happened to be here.

DD: What is your favorite part of Portland?

I like that people here are receptive to the creative lifestyle. It's assumed that whatever other menial job you might have, you likely are an artist of some kind and whatever is currently paying your bills won't be your life's vocation. The city embraces that and makes it easier to get by. It once had the reputation that Portland was where books and records went to die, but alas a lot of that has passed. We still have Powell's, but either the city as a whole is not the Treasure Island it once was or I've gotten too lazy to explore it properly.

DD: Where in Portland/ Oregon would you most like to visit?

Well, there's this girl and I watch her apartment from the bushes across the street...and one day, I hope to go inside.

KIDDING!

DD: Would you like to write/Illustrate for another media? or conversely, how would you feel about writing a comic of a character from a different media, for example, Dr. Who, James Bond? What would you explore?

Well, I already write novels. 3 1/2 by last count (I Was Someone Dead is a novella). Actually, 4 1/2, because there is one as of yet unpublished. So, other media is already a done deal for me.

If I could revamp anything it would be an old radio show about a writer who solves personal interest cases and mysteries called Box 13. It starred Alan Ladd. Unfortunately, some other guys beat me to it, but they've gone way off the concept and it's virtually unrecognizable. It's not bad, but it's not the Box 13 that I got hooked on when I was a teenager. Which makes me sound really old. All the older fellas were coming back from fighting the Nazis, and I was tuning in to Dan Holliday on the wireless....

Saturday, October 16, 2010

As you know the WWD-V is coming up at Excalibur books. I went last year with the boys and it is was fun. My favorite part all the art work that is up for the silent auction. There is a great list of guests. Come by and check it out. All of the proceeds goes to benefit survivors of domestic violence and their children. And it is officially Wonder Woman day in Portland.

Excalibur books
Oct 24,2010

PORTLAND SPECIAL GUESTS SIGNING:

Guests will have special prints to sign, given away free! Sketches will be by donation.

Sunday, October 10, 2010

Cat Farris has a smooth cartoony style which gives her characters their own unique style. Cat graduated from the Savannah College of Art and Design in Savannah, GA. Cat can be found at Periscope Studio illustrating and doing storyboards, animations, comics.

I'm currently penciling, inking, coloring, and lettering a comic with Oregon writer J. Kingman. It's about a young girl named Larsha, and the out-of-the-ordinary adventures she has with her ghost twin brother, Cash. Natalie Nourigat did issue 1 of the same series.

DD: What is your writing Process?

Um, I don't write, but I can talk about my drawing process. My animation professor once said, "It's no use drawing until you've had a chance to think about it." I like to read through the script all the way at least once before I start thumbnailing out pages. Once I've had a chance to see everything in my head as a whole, then I go through and thumbnail page by page. If anything is bugging me, or I just can't find a fix I like, sometimes I'll run it past some of my colleagues at Periscope. I like being able to have different eyes look at my work. After thumbnails, it's on to pencils, which I then scan into the computer, and print out on Bristol paper in red line. I ink over those printouts, and then scan in the inks and drop out the red lines in Photoshop, and clean up the pages for coloring.

DD: What Comic/ Trade would you recommend?

I'm a big fan of Mysterius The Unfathomable, words by Jeff Parker, and art by Tom Fowler. It's one of the best things I've read in years.

Also, Scott Pilgrim!

DD: What Comic/ Trade would you recommend to someone new to comics?

I would say either Scott Pilgrim, or Underground(Steve Lieber, Jeff Parker). Both are pretty non-traditional, but a great showcase of what the medium is capable of. Especially if it's someone who's not sure they're into that whole "superhero" thing.

DD: When are story illustrator, how involved are you in the writing?

I'm usually not involved much at all. I like to let the writer do their thing. However, if I find something in the script that just isn't working, and I feel comfortable enough with the writer, I will make some suggestions on a particular panel as far as action and staging go.

DD: What skill would you like to learn?

I've always wanted to learn more inking techniques. A lot of the people I work with are constantly experimenting with their inking, and it's really inspiring to see what comes out of that experimentation. I'm a pretty straightforward gal, and I'd like to learn how to step outside of the box more with my work.

DD: Do you have a collection? If so, what is one of the items you're most proud of?

I have a giant collection of Japanese-language manga. I've studied Japanese since high school, and reading manga was how I kept up with the language after school. I love it when people visit me and go "WOAH! Look at all this manga!"

DD: What is your favorite genre of Comics?

Despite my giant collection mentioned in the last question, I don't think I have a favorite genre, really. I like manga a lot, but I also love super hero stuff. I have stacks of old issues of Wolverine and X-Men, am an avid webcomics reader, plus the non-traditional comics I mentioned earlier... basically, if the art is good and the story is well written, I'll read anything!

DD: Do you have an Ipad? If so what do use it for the most.

Hahahahaha! No way! I'm not even interested in having one, to tell the truth.:)

DD: What is your favorite TV show/ movie?

I don't really watch TV anymore, but when I did, I loved watching Bones. As for movies, probably Lilo and Stitch. That was probably the last truly good thing to come out of Disney before they gave up on 2D.

DD: How does the Portland comics culture shapes your work

Because there are so many comics artists out there, I'm always getting bombarded with different influences. From highly traditional, to totally indie, Portland has everything. It also motivates me to work harder, because there are so many folks sitting right next to me that are super talented. I can't afford to slack if I want some respect!:)

DD: What was your first comic convention?

I'm pretty sure it was the Portland Comic Convention, way back in the early 90's.

DD: What is your favorite part of comic conventions?

Back then, it was comics. Now, it's networking. I love going to conventions and meeting other industry folks, and seeing folks I only run into at cons.

DD: If you weren’t doing comics what would you do?

I'd probably be doing Japanese/English interpretation.

DD: Do you have a favorite restaurant that you would recommend?

Sckavones , on 41st and Division! SO GOOD!

DD: How long have you lived in Portland, what made you choose Portland?

I was born here, so I had no choice!:D But also, I think Portland has a magical pull of some sort. Even though I grew up having every intention to leave for good some day, I always ended up right back here.

DD: What is your favorite part of Portland?

The Japanese Garden, and the Chinese Garden. Two of the most peaceful places in the whole city.

DD: Where in Portland/ Oregon would you most like to visit?

I'm sure there are a few restaurants I haven't been to yet... :)

DD: Would you like to write for another media? or conversely, how would you feel about writing a comic of a character from a different media, for example, Dr. Who, James Bond? What would you explore?

I'm not much of a writer in general, but I sure like to draw. Comics, animation, illustration, anything. Someone once said they'd like to see me do a children's book. I think I could get into that. If someone out there wants to write me a crazy story, no matter what it's about, I'd draw the heck out of it.

DD: What's the most important thing you've learned?

It would definitely be to never give up. That sounds really hokey, but as an artist it's so easy to see the work of people around you and feel like you'll never be that talented, and you should just throw out your pencil and brush and never try again. But you have to keep going and always try to use that feeling as motivation to work harder, and be the best you that you can. Sure, you can't draw like the guy next to you, but if you quit, who's going to draw like you?:)

Thursday, October 07, 2010

I started listening to War Rocket Ajax with Chris Simms and Adam Warrock. Their podcast is about comics, video games, TV and other pop culture goodness. This time it is about GI Joe and a discussion with Brandon Jerwa. Brandon wrote many of the great GI Joe Stories, but his early work stories are why you need to listen to this. There is a stripper and ape on a motor bike. It is all good.

Wednesday, October 06, 2010

Daniel Duford is a writer and illustrator focusing on mythology and the human condition. He is also a nationally shown sculptor and teacher. He has been shown at MASS MoCA and The Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago, and other Art Galleries across the country. He is currently a instructor in the Intermedia, Illustration and Sculpture departments at Pacific Northwest College of Art. Take a look at Green Man of Portland, Radio Relay Towers and The Naked Boy.

Doug Dorr: What projects are you working on currently?
I'm finishing The Naked Boy. I've been behind on that book for months as I finished other projects. I've cleared the Fall to finish it. I will be posting 4 new pages today in fact.

Doug Dorr: What is your Writing Process?
I have a very convoluted process. I generally start with thumbnails and text. Sometimes I start with a rough typed outline and go to thumbnails. After I do the thumbnails I do some rough pages. It's like building a painting, the process reveals the story.

Doug Dorr: What Comic/ Trade would you recommend?
I just read The Mighty which I loved. I didn't think someone could do the deconstruction of the superhero again in an interesting way but this one is. But I also just read Leviathan by Jens Harder. Man, that has been on my mind all summer. Pure visual poetry.

Doug Dorr: What Comic/ Trade would you recommend to someone new to comics?
It depends on their interest but I think the Fables series is really great for the general reader. I might also recommend Joss Whedon's run on the X-Men for someone interested in superheroes, and for fans of Sopranos style storytelling Scalped is awesome.

Doug Dorr: What skill would you like to learn?
Selling my comics. (JK) I think becoming adept at digital color would be a useful tool. It could be so blunt but when you see someone use it wisely it's a powerful tool.

Doug Dorr: Do you have a collection? If so, what is one of the items you're most proud of?
I do. I have almost a complete run of Swamp Thing from the first series to the end of Alan Moore's run. I think I'm missing five issues. But I'm not really a collector per se. I read everything I own so I don't think it's worth very much.

Doug Dorr: What is your favorite genre of Comics?
That's tough. I just like good storytelling. I regularly read superhero comics, but have little patience for what passes as the baseline for mainstream comics. I also love really experimental work. I love Weathercraft by Jim Woodring, Theo Ellsworth's work and things like Utu by Malachi Ward that I picked up at Stumptown. I'm drawn to work that could only be done in comics. I can't look at photo tracing or comics that look like they want to be movies.

Doug Dorr: Do you have an Ipad? If so what do use it for the most.
Not yet but I am intrigued by the possibilities.

What is your favorite TV show/ movie?
One of my favorite movies of all time is David Cronenberg's The Fly. I also watch The Godfather at least once a year. I thought this last season of True Blood was one of the best and of course The Sopranos can't be beat.

What was your first comic convention?
One when I was a kid in Bridgeport, CT where I grew up. This was probably 1980. My Mom took me. I remember it was pretty small and scruffy. I bought some original art from a kid who was not much older than me.

What is your favorite part of comic conventions?
I'm not a big fan of crowds. I like to get in and get out. Whenever I sit at a table I'm cranky and exhausted by the end.

What comics do your kids like? What was/is your favorite character?
My 3 year old daughter loves Owly and the Powerpuff Girls.

If you weren’t doing comics what would you do?
My work is pretty diverse. I teach at an art school, make sculpture, paintings and write. I need the conversation between all the mediums to keep me going.

Doug Dorr: Do you have a favorite restaurant that you would recommend?
Toro Bravo.Doug Dorr: How long have you lived in Portland, what made you choose Portland?
14 years. My wife went to college here. It feels more like home than anywhere else I've lived.

Doug Dorr: What is your favorite part of Portland?
The feeling of being in a small town and a big city simultaneously.

Doug Dorr: Where in Portland/ Oregon would you most like to visit?
I don't know maybe the Rogue River area.

Doug Dorr: Would you like to write for another media? or conversely, how would you feel about writing a comic of a character from a different media, for example, Dr. Who, James Bond? What would you explore?
I would love to. Like I said above, it would have to make sense that it's a comic. I don't know if the Buffy and Angel books are totally successful because I'm always thinking of the actors. It would be fun to do a tangential character from a successful series and take that in a different direction.

I went to the X-Force signing with Rick Remender at Cosmic Monkey. I really liked the the New X-Factor book. I already liked X-Force and was a fan of Fantomex from morrison's new X-men run. So it wasn't a hard sell. Jerome Opena's art is fantatastic as usual. Deadpool was handled great, the right balance of humor and action. It gave him more humanity opposed to being a parody. Rick Remender has big plans for X-Force. It will be fun run.

Monday, October 04, 2010

Natalie 'Tally' Nourigat is a sequential artist living in Portland, Oregon. She was an intern at Periscope studios. She is currently updating an artblog and webcomic Between Gears. Her story Julie Christie!, written by Jamie S. Rich, was published in Images' This Is A Souvenir. She has done several other mini comics and webcomics like Out of place and Over the Surface.

Doug Dorr: What projects are you working on currently?
Natalie Nourigat: I am illustrating a YA graphic novel, working on several personal projects like Between Gears and Over the Surface, and creating a children’s book with my dad.

DD: What is your writing Process?
I kind of disappear for several days at a time when I write; I retreat very far inside of my own head and work through the big-picture stuff like overarching plot, what messages the story will send, and what the mood and scope of the work will be. Writing is more difficult for me than art; I need total focus and I shut down all other operations for a few days to do it.

DD: What Comic/ Trade would you recommend?
My all-time favorites are Death Note, Nausicaa, Scott Pilgrim, Confidential Confessions, and The War at Ellsmere. Some titles from the last year that I’m really big on are Shadoweyes, Foiled, Polly and the Pirates, Pluto, Underground, and Mysterius the Unfathomable.

DD: What Comic/ Trade would you recommend to someone new to comics?
I just recommended 12 Reasons Why I Love Her to a friend. I have also recommended Persepolis, Scott Pilgrim, The War at Ellsmere, Hark! A Vagrant, DAR, Emitown, Ellerbisms, Demo, Death Note, Asterios Polyp…it totally depends on who you are talking to and what they like. Sometimes I just recommend that they go to Floating World Comics and talk to Jason to figure it out!

DD: When are story illustrator, how involved are you in the writing?
I speak when spoken to. Several writers I have worked with will ask for my opinion on plot stuff and I am happy to give it and be involved that way, but I will draw as directed when handed a final script. I’ll only speak up at that point if I think something is confusing or I can make the story easier to understand with a small alteration.

DD: What skill would you like to learn?
I would love to be better at coloring digitally and at watercoloring. I stick to pretty basic techniques, but there is so much cool stuff that other artists are doing! I would also love to do more life drawing.

DD: Do you have a collection? If so, what is one of the items you're most proud of?
What I think of as my collection probably isn’t of much value to others; the trades that I pick up from creators face-to-face at conventions, or are signed or sketched in, retain that memory and are elevated in my mind from my other comics. I have You Have Killed Me from Comic-Con 2009, where I was actually staying with Jamie and Joelle and got to hear a lot of stories from them about the making of the comic. The book has nice notes from them inside, and I read it while camping out overnight for a Miyazaki panel, so that is a special comic to me.

DD: What is your favorite genre of Comics?
I really like when a comic will combine two unlikely genres or feign that it is one and then pull some big surprises on readers. I like superhero stuff when it shows the traditionally unseen side of things, like Gotham Central, Astro City, and Batgirl: Year One. I like comedy, adventure, action, romance, slice-of-life…I like it all! It just has to be done well and not be something that I’ve seen a hundred times before.

DD: Do you have an Ipad? If so what do use it for the most.
No -- I am stuck in 2009! I am really trying to keep my life simple right now, and my flip-phone and Dell laptop are the cornerstones of that philosophy.

DD: What is your favorite TV show/ movie?
Parks and Recreation, HANDS DOWN. So, so funny. It’s my favorite thing on television; I wish that it was required viewing for everyone so that I could talk about it in every conversation I had.

DD: How does the Portland comics culture shapes your work
It’s funny: I grew up here, but I didn’t realize that Portland was a comic city until I was 19 and stumbled onto Periscope Studio and Floating World Comics. Since then, the comic community has helped me to no end in developing my artwork, learning to network and market myself, and meeting the awesome people that I call my friends. When you know even 10 or 20 local professionals that you can meet for coffee and ask, honestly, your tough questions about working in comics, the whole world becomes a lot easier and you feel like you have a network of support and encouragement. It’s immeasurably helpful. I owe a lot to the people who have taken the time to help me find my way in comics. I hope that I can be that professional who helps out new creators someday!

DD: What was your first comic convention?
I went to Stumptown in 2007. It was really exciting and I was a total dork. I was going to school in Eugene, but I took the bus to Portland, went to the show alone, and walked around in this business casual outfit trying to show my portfolio to people. Thank goodness Portlanders are kind. I had a great time and left with a ton of comics.

DD: What is your favorite part of comic conventions?
Meeting the people behind titles I enjoy. They’re even more enjoyable to read when you know what the creators are like.

DD: If you weren’t doing comics what would you do?
I like teaching and performing; I might have pursued a language teaching position, piano, or theater.

DD: Do you have a favorite restaurant that you would recommend?
My favorite Japanese restaurant is Sambi’s in Beaverton. It was a frequent meeting place for my high school Japanese club friends and me. The food is fresh and authentic, the service is great, the price is good, and it’s very low-key.

DD: How long have you lived in Portland, what made you choose Portland?
I was born and raised in the suburbs of southwest Portland. I love the city and was very excited to move back here after school.

DD: What is your favorite part of Portland?
I love the hiking in Forest Park, the Japanese Gardens, and the Oregon Zoo. I spent half of my childhood between those three places, so that entire area is very nostalgic and beautiful to me.

DD: Where in Portland/ Oregon would you most like to visit?
I really want to go back to Tamolitch Pool, which my friends and I hiked to a few years ago on a McKenzie River area camping trip. It is one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen. The entire hike is gorgeous; you see fresh green saplings sprouting from massive fallen trees, mossy bridges, waterfalls, calm sections of river where you can walk on the rocks and picnic in the middle, shady groves, and dusty rock paths all within a couple of miles.

DD: Would you like to write for another media? or conversely, how would you feel about writing a comic of a character from a different media, for example, Dr. Who, James Bond? What would you explore?
I love the Joss Whedon comic adaptations, like Buffy, Dr. Horrible, Serenity, and Dollhouse. I think that his shows transfer really well to comics, and I’d love to work on an adaptation like that. Each of those worlds feels very rich, like there are a thousand directions you could take any one episode that the show just didn't have time to fully explore. I also really, really want to do (or at least read) a faithful comic adaptation of His Dark Materials. It’s my favorite book series; I read it between the ages of 12 and 14 and it influenced my writing a lot. It’s so visual and exciting, too—I think it would make a great comic.

Inkstuds is a collection of thirty interviews with North American alternative comic artists taken from the impressive archive that Robin McConnell has built up over the past 5 years on his radio show of the same name. The interviews focus on the creative process and influences, but the subjects discussed often branch off in surprising and interesting directions. The artists chosen cover the range from the older generation of und...erground cartoonists to the new generation of the comics avant garde. This book is an invaluable resource, not just for comic enthusiasts but anyone interested in the artistic process.LISTING INFORMATION:
WHO: Robin McConnell
WHAT: Book release & signing
WHEN: Thursday, Oct. 14th, 6-8pm
WHERE: Floating World Comics
20 NW 5th Ave #101
Portland, OR 97209
(503)241-0227